The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Artemisia plant, botanically known as Artemisia vulgaris and referred to by the cultivar named Oriental Limelight.
The new Artemisia is a naturally-occurring whole plant mutation of an unidentified selection of Artemisia vulgaris. The new Artemisia was discovered and selected by the Inventor within a population of the unidentified selection in Japan in 1991. The new Artemisia was selected based on its much brighter variegation and more uniform plant habit compared to the unidentified selection.
Asexual reproduction of the new Artemisia by terminal cuttings taken in a controlled environment in Cornwall, England, has shown that the unique features of this new Artemisia are stable and are reproduced true to type in successive generations.
The new Artemisia has not been observed under all possible environmental conditions. The phenotype may vary somewhat with variations in environment such as temperature, daylength and light intensity, without, however, any variance in genotype.
The following characteristics have been repeatedly observed and are determined to be basic characteristics of xe2x80x98Oriental Limelightxe2x80x99 and distinguish xe2x80x98Oriental Limelightxe2x80x99 as a new and distinct cultivar:
1. Upright, outwardly spreading, dense and bushy growth habit.
2. Good vigor.
3. Freely basally branching plant habit, plants typically do not require pinching.
4. Bright yellow and green variegated leaves.